Reyes hits DOF anew over Legislature’s expenditures

Apparently fed up with the thorough check-up given to the Legislature’s expenditures, Senate Floor Leader Pete P. Reyes said he will come up with legislation to transfer liability to the Secretary of Finance in case of questionable accounts.

The proposal stems from alleged concerns by Finance Sec. Lucy DLG Nielsen over expenses charged by lawmakers to their respective government accounts, which have delayed payment or reimbursement.

But Reyes warned that DOF’s action “to question many of these expenses is creating friction between the executive branch and the Legislature.”

According to senator, they were told during a recent meeting with the governor and his staff that the finance chief had expressed reservations about her liability for authorizing the payment.

“I told the governor that if she wants to take full responsibility of the liability, I am willing to draft a legislation that will give her all the liability that members have here,” he said.

Since her office clears the payment, legislators should be exonerated from any liability that may arise in cases where the expenditures are found to be questionable, he added.

“If she wants that, we will gladly give that to her but we don’t want her reading more into the ‘public purpose’ law than what is written there,” Reyes said.

The senator sponsored the law passed early this year which defines the scope of public purpose as provided under the Constitution in terms of which items can be charged by legislators on their accounts. These include cultural and traditional events, such as funeral and sports events.

The measure was prompted by disagreements between the Legislature and DOF on the issue. For the past several months, lawmakers have aired their gripes against the department for questioning items which they maintain are within the authority of the law.

A legislative initiative establishing a separate finance office for the three branches of the government was voted down in the Nov. 6 midterm elections.

Last September, the House of Representatives slammed DOF for reportedly withholding clearance on the scheduled travels of some members to Washington D.C. to attend the congressional hearings in the U.S. capital.

The administration, however, had claimed some legislators failed to meet requirements prior to the travel authorization, such as unsettled accounts from previous trips overseas.

In an interview with Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio this week on the issue, he said that regulations must be complied with to avoid any delay in the payment.

“Because it’s her responsibility, she has to review that but I think the secretary is working closely with members of the Legislature to come up with some [measures],” he explained. “When they submit their bills, they have to [include] supporting documents. That’s all they’re required to do.”